St. Louis, MO - The Lincoln Memorial men's volleyball team enters the IVA Tournament as the (1) seed, and starts tournament play Friday, April 18th at 4 pm Eastern Time. They will play the winner of the (8) Thomas More and (9) Roosevelt match, which occurs on Friday morning at 11 am Eastern Time. 

The Railsplitters have won the past 6 IVA Tournaments: 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024 (2020 was canceled due to COVID-19). 

The seeding for the IVA Tournament was based on Key Performance Indicators, (KPI) which is based on opponent winning percentage, strength of schedule, point differential, and location of match. 

The seeding going into the IVA Tournament is as follows:
1. Lincoln Memorial
2. Maryville
3. Tusculum
4. Catawba
5. Rockhurst
6. Missouri S&T
7. Barry
8. Thomas More
9. Roosevelt

(1) Lincoln Memorial will play at 4 pm Eastern Time on Friday, April 18th against the winner of (8) Thomas More and (9) Roosevelt. 

Lincoln Memorial is entering the IVA Tournament with a 21-1 overall record and a 14-game win streak. If the Railsplitters win out the tournament, they will have accumulated the most wins in a season in program history with 23, with the previous record being 22 in the 2023 season. 

Currently, Matthew Gentry is leading the team in kills with 197 kills on the season for an average of 2.59 kills per set and in service aces with 41 service aces for an average of 0.54 aces per set. John Luers nearly has 800 assists on the season as he has 783 assists for a double-digit average of 10.30 assists per set. Defensively, Luers is the team-leader in digs with 2.08 digs per set for a total of 158 digs. Gentry has team-highs in solo blocks, block assists, and total blocks with 23 solo blocks, 65 block assists for 88 total blocks for an average of 1.16 blocks per set. 

In the IVA, Gentry is 3rd in aces per set (0.539), 2nd in blocks per set (1.158), 1st in attack percentage (0.579), and 7th in points per set (3.86). Luers is 1st in the IVA in assists per set (10.30) and 7th in digs per set (2.08). Eliel Salva Torres is 4th in the IVA in blocks per set (0.940) and 2nd in attack percentage (0.494). Tate Colebaugh is 10th in the IVA in digs per set (1.84).

Nationally, Gentry is 7th in aces per set, 6th in blocks per set, and 1st in attack percentage. Luers is 8th in the nation in assists per set and 25th in digs per set. 

As a team, Lincoln Memorial is 4th in the IVA (13th nationally) in aces per set (1.63), 3rd (24th nationally) in assists per set (11.26), 2nd (6th nationally) in blocks per set (2.480), 1st (9th nationally) in attack percentage (0.324), 2nd in kills per set (12.30), 1st (1st nationally) in match win percentage (0.955), and 1st (1st nationally) opponent attack percentage (0.156). 

LMU vs Thomas More

If Lincoln Memorial faces Thomas More, it will be the 4th time in series history that the two teams will face each other, with al three previous matching being in 2024. LMU is winning the series 3-0: a 3-0 win on January 9th, 2024, a 3-1 win on March 15th 2024, and a 3-0 win on April 13th, 2024. The most recent win, which was on April 13th, 2024, was the IVA Tournament Championship match where LMU defeated Thomas More 3-0 (25-17, 25-16, 25-19). 

Thomas More will be entering the IVA Tournament with a 7-14 overall record on a 5-game losing streak. Their last match was against IVA opponent Tusculum, where the Saints fell to the Pioneers 1-3. 

LMU vs Roosevelt
If Lincoln Memorial faces Roosevelt, it will be the first time in Lincoln Memorial men's volleyball history that the two teams will face each other.

Roosevelt will be entering the IVA Tournament with a 5-16 overall record. Their last match was against Trinity Christian, where the Saints came out victorious 3-0. 

The links to the Live Stream and Live Stats can be found below: 

Live Stream

Live Stats